Cleaner, safer, quieter tyres: labels to become more visible for consumers

European Union is updating its rules on the energy performance labelling of tyres and extending its scope to tyres for heavy-duty vehicles. Labels will be displayed more visibly for consumers and include information on snow and ice grip. Council of the European Union adopted, on 4 March, its negotiating position on the proposed new rules.

New rules will benefit customers, who can make an informed choice on the safety and fuel efficiency of their tyres. They will also contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in the road sector and thereby help the EU meet its commitments under the Paris Agreement.

Anton Anton, Romanian Minister for Energy of Romania and chair of the Council: Council's negotiating position clarifies and extends the scope of current regulatory framework. It updates label and mandates inclusion of information on snow and ice grip. New requirements regarding display of label, including for distance selling and sales on the internet, will improve its visibility to customers and ensure that they are fully informed when making purchasing decisions. Regulation also improves enforcement by creating an obligation to register tyres in a product database.

Scope of regulation is extended for the first time to tyres for trucks and buses (C3 tyres). Previously, only tyres for cars and vans were included in the rules. Council position also allows for future inclusion of re-treaded tyres, once a suitable testing method to measure performance of such tyres has been developed. A review clause provides the possibility for a future inclusion of mileage and abrasion as a parameter for the label when suitable testing methods are available.

Background

Objective of tyre labelling system is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and noise pollution in the transport sector and increase road safety by better informing consumers about fuel efficiency, noise and safety parameters of the tyres they buy. Road transport is responsible for about 22% of EU's total greenhouse gas emissions, and tyres, mainly because of their rolling resistance, account for 5-10% of a vehicle's fuel consumption. Reduction of rolling resistance of tyres therefore contributes to lowering emissions, while also providing cost savings to consumers, thanks to lower fuel consumption.

Revision of the rules had become necessary as a review of the current legislative framework showed that the tyre labelling scheme was not fully reaching its objective of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the transport sector due to low visibility of the labels and a lack of enforcement.

Next steps

Once the European Parliament has adopted its position on the file, inter-institutional negotiations can begin.

Source:Romania2019.eu, Council of the European Union